The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-05-08

ucts or bring to the city the coal. stone. lumber
ana farm wealth of the State in addition TO vast
oufks OF merchandise from the East The out
"aro bound cars take the machinery and wood
WORK OF all descriptions that are turned out of
tne Indianapolis shops and manufactures Be-
sizes these are the shipments of the wholesale
merchants IN various lines. whose goods
sent into illinois, Iowa all of Indiana, and the
southern and far-of Western States.
OF TINS immense daily traffic is the Belt railway
that enclrcles the city with single track fifteen
miles long, to which is added a double-track
me. making the length of way eighteen miles.
BY TINS means cars loaded at factories are hauled
directly to the Northern, Western, Southern and
Eastern systems Of roads, saving large sums in
carriage: another item that accrues TO the beEe-
MT or the city through this system is that OF
switching charges. In this respect Indianapolis
country the charge being only $3.50 per car.
wniie Cnlcaeo has to pay So Each OF the
thirteen roads moves twelve freight trains of
thirty each. In addition to these extras
are frequen tly sent out.
Inc passenger trains all these roads bring
daily. from all points of the compass, more than
Depot mis- Is regarded the average travel.
but IN the summer season the number is es-
timated at fifty thousand. 1t requires ITO
daily trains to move this army of people. a large
proportion of whom break travel for day
TWO TO inspect the sights of the city, in which
they get ocular evidence of the assertion a rail
road man made. yesterday. that Indianapolis is
the largest inland city in the world Il mean in
land" he continued .tfor have water
traffic whatever. Our reliance is solely rail-
roads" Besides the regular freight hauling,
every one of the leading fast freight lines In
the country has Indianapolis Offices, through
which is done a large part of the transportation
IN merchandise. factory products and grain.
Streets and Sewers.
From the lookout the courthouse tower
Indianapolis presents beautiful picture, with
its long lines of tawny streets, marglned with
grass-plots and waving green trees. The resi-
e4ence portions of the city, for the reason that,
unlike most cities. each dwelling has ample
breathing space about it in the shape of a yard
and lawn, looks like far-spreading park. There
are six hundred miles of Streets of which over
four hundred miles are improved, the remainder
being in the outskirts of the city These last,
by reason of the nature of the soil, are quite as
good as what called improved streets in
many places, because, with the exception of
few weeks each year, they are the best of drive
ways. The streets are broad and straight. most
of them running miles without a detection
Many of the streets are well macadamized and
there is a considerable amount OF block pave
ment. which is of good quality as ordinarily
seen anywhere, though there is little
encouragement gwen 20 that kind of
streetmakng, Indianapolis being about
to enter upon new era in
having become satisfied that better material is
required for much used thoroughfares, especially
in the business portion of the city. Standard
material will hereafter be used for this kind of
improvement, and the product of this intelligent
character of work will not only inure to the ben
eft of properly holders along the line of improve
ment, but will be a benefit to the city at large
1t is now contemplated to improve Washington
atraat from the Steta-house crouuds froutiuc
the Capitol, beginning at Mississippi street, to
the court house at Alabama street by paving
with Medina stone, laid in the most approved
style, which will result in a boulevard equal to
the wellknown Euclid avenue of Cleveland.
This kind of pavement not only has beauty to
commend it. but experience has shown that 1t
will last at least fifty or sixty years. 1t is ex-
pected that when this line of Medina stone is
laid other streets will follow. and that the days
of cobbls- stone payements so far as indianapolis
is concerned, will have passed by forever.
The long lines of luxuriant shade trees here
especially noticeable by visitors. who. COM
pairing this with other cities, acknowledge that
Indianapolis is the best shaded city of its size in
the United States. Besides this, many of the
residence streets are fanked on either side by
wide strip of grass, which greatly improves the
appearance of the street and is of great utility
narrowing the roadway, thus reducing the out
lay for street repairs and diminishing the amount
of dust. City Civil Engineer Shearer some time
ago recommended the narrowing of the streets
recommendation meets with favor.
There has been expended upon the streets of
Indianapolis in repairs during the last three
years the following sums: In 1884. $40, 000 In
1885, $31. 900; in 1886, $50, 900. The expenditure
by the present street commissioner, c. S. Roney,
will be $50, 900. This includes the work of keep
ing the sewers in order and the repairing of city
bridges.
In sewerage this city has whit is commonly
known as the combined system, which runs the
storm-water and sewage in the
There is somewhat more than twenty miles of
sewers. or these. two miles of main trunk
sewer eight feet in diameter. There are one
and e-half mile of six foot sewer, four miles
of four-foot sewer, four and quarter miles of
three-foot sewer, two and a half miles of two
foot sewer, beside smaller lines The
principal portions of the city are thus under
for drainage of surface water and sewage
from residences and business places. These
and are being extended from time to
time. During the last five years, under
City Civil Engineer Shearer, sewers
have been built than in all the preceding time
put together. In addition to the regular system
for surface drainage purposes, Pogue's has
been deepened and widened, which makes it in
effect main trunk sewer, so far as storm water
is concerned, greatly relieving the sewers, and
placing the run itself beyond the danger line of
floods, which have characterized it in the past.
The recent improvements in the State ditch
the north side of the city have established be-
yond question the fact that the drainage of the
northeast portion of the city is now secure and
there will be no further Hoods through the over
flow of the State ditch.
The building of the new Union passenger sta
ton and train sheds, to be one of the largest
depots in the United States, has necessitated
some changes in old established thorouehfNres
about its site, and it has been made necessary
to establish new and safe crossings for the pub
lie across the Union railway tracks 1t is in
ACKNOWLEDGMENT the work will go
soon as the present hitch between the Council
and the company can be adjusted-to improve
the Illinois street tunnel by tearing out the
present one, which is inadequate, and replacing
it with new structure of iron and mason
ry of modern design, increasing the
width and capacity of the tunnel, and
rendering it more desirable to travel, by making
the approaches much less abrupt, by lighting
the tunnel, keeping it clean and making il in
every way what it should be. The present tun-
mel is monopolized by the street railway and is
as dark and ill-smelling sewer, the
fortunate people who now dragged through
that burrow can testify. The total width of the
new tunnel from extreme to the other will
be forty-one feet There will be two roadwavs
fo,t